Saturday, October 20, 2007

Too safe to live in

Michael Ledeen, writing in today's Wall Street Journal (subs. req'd) is ready to declare VAQ day (victory over al-Qaeda), unless there's a Weimar-style stab in the back ("[generals and soldiers] fear that the political class in Washington may yet snatch defeat from the jaws of victory"), and offers this pleasing development --

As Robert McFarlane reported in these pages, Baghdad's Anglican Canon, Andrew White, has organized meetings of leading Iraqi Christian, Sunni and Shiite clerics, all of whom called for nation-wide reconciliation.

Indeed, McFarlane did so report, on the 25th of August (subs. req'd) --

This process of nurturing reconciliation by bringing Iraq's religious leaders together -- gradually in small groups leading to a conference this past June involving over 70 leaders, and devolving now here in Cairo to the six most senior clerics in all Iraq -- has been led by Canon Andrew White, an Anglican priest who has established his contacts and credibility with Iraqi leaders during more than nine years of service in Baghdad.

The vicar working on the release of five Britons held hostage in Baghdad has fled Iraq because of what has been described as “a serious security threat”.

Canon Andrew White, who last week said he was warned by a member of al-Qaeda months ago about the nature of the failed terror attacks in London and Glasgow, today announced that he had left the country because of fears for his safety.

Presumably for his own safety, The Google can find no apparent sightings of Canon White in Iraq since then. Some reconciliation.